Multimedia Services

Making Screen Captures | Recording Screen Activity & Voice | Playing the Demo

Making Screen Captures using WM Encoder 7

See Appendix: "Resolution for Encoding" & "Resolution for Playback" before you begin encoding.

Download Pre-configured Screen Capture Session Profiles: 28Kbps & 128Kbps

The new session wizard employs the easiest way to begin an encoding session. To use the New Session Wizard for screen capture, follow the instructions below or view the multimedia instructions (high bandwidth | low bandwidth):

Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Microsoft Media Center, and choose Windows Media Encoder folder, then click on Window Media Encoder.
In the Welcome to Windows Media Encoder dialog box, click the Broadcast, capture, or convert a file using the New Session Wizard option, and then click OK.
The first page of the New Session Wizard is the Session Selection page. Click the Capture audio or video from attached devices or computer screen option, make sure the Begin capturing when this wizard finishes check box is cleared, and then click Next.

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Note: You can start the New Session Wizard at any time from the Windows Media Encoder’s main user interface by clicking Session, and then clicking New Session Wizard. If you access the wizard this way, the Session Selection page will appear.

On the Device Options page, you must specify source types. Audio is permanently selected; select the Video check box to include video. In the Video box, in the list, click Screen Capture.

Click Configure, which is next to the Video box. This opens the Screen Capture Properties dialog box. In the Capture Source list, specify whether you will capture the entire screen, an individual window, or a region of the screen that you can then customize. If you are not capturing the whole screen, one option in the Screen Capture Properties dialog box is to make the border flash on the region you are capturing—a visual verification of precisely what and when you are encoding. After you make the configurations needed for the software you want to demonstrate, click OK.

Click Next.
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On the Output File page, type a path name and file name for the content to be captured in Windows Media format, and then click Next.
On the Output File Distribution page, choose between two distribution methods: with one method the file streams from a Windows Media server; with the other it streams from a Web server or plays on a computer. The method you select determines which profiles you can use.

For this scenario, click the File will stream from a Web server or play directly on a computer option, and then click Next.

Note: The difference between a Web server and a Windows Media server is explained in the “Distributing your demonstration” section of this tutorial.
On the Profile Selection page, choose the profile—or collection of properties—that best matches the source content, the bandwidth of the audience that will view the encoded content, and the method of distribution.

Of the many profiles available, three make use of the Windows Media Screen codec and are therefore correct for screen capture:

Screen capture (live) for dial-up modems (28.8 Kbps), designed for real-time or live capture on a computer with lower processing power, and for an audience with a dial-up modem connection of 28.8 Kbps; Screen capture for dial-up modems (28.8 Kbps), designed for the same audience but requiring more processing power for its smoother video capture; and Screen capture for e-mail and dual Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) (128 Kbps), designed for an audience with a connection of 100 Kbps or more and for content to be distributed by e-mail or local playback. For all three, output video resolution will match the resolution of the source.

Click the appropriate profile, and then click Next.
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On the Display Information page, type the optional information (title, author, and so on) that you want to appear when the content is played, and then click Next.
On the Settings Review page, review the settings you have chosen and make sure they are correct, and then click Finish.
When the dialog box appears, click OK. You can now access the encoder’s main user interface.
While encoding to a file (as opposed to encoding for broadcast), the encoder’s user interface is minimized by default. You might want to change this setting so that you can monitor the various panels. To keep the interface maximized during encoding, on the Tools menu, click Options, click the General tab, and then clear the Minimize during screen capture session, then stop on restore check box.

Note: If you intend to capture the entire screen and your computer has a single-monitor configuration, the encoder’s user interface—and all of the activity that occurs on it during the encoding process—will also be captured. In a dual-monitor configuration, you can avoid this by moving the encoder to the secondary monitor. If you are capturing a specific window or a region of the screen, move the encoder to an out-of-the-way place on the screen or to a secondary monitor.
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Recording Screen Activity and Voice

On the encoder’s main user interface, click Start to begin encoding.
Begin narrating as you move the cursor about the screen and demonstrate the software. Speak clearly into the microphone. Try to avoid rapid movement on the screen.

Note: If you keep the encoder’s user interface maximized during screen capture, you will notice that content is not displayed in the Input and Output areas of the Video panel. This is normal for screen capture, although content can be displayed in either or both of these areas during other types of encoding.

Note: Ways to optimize screen capture and audio capture are discussed later in this section.
When you are finished encoding, maximize the encoder to end the session; or, if you kept the encoder maximized throughout the encoding process, click the Stop button.
Note the contents of the Encoding Results dialog box, and then click Close.
Close the encoder. A warning message appears, asking whether you want to save the encoding session. If you do, it will have a .wme file extension.

Note: After you have recorded your demonstration, view the results on Windows Media Player to make sure the results are as you expected.

Playing the Demonstration

Click Start, point to Programs, and then click Windows Media Player; or, double-click the Windows Media Player icon on your desktop.
On the File menu, click Open.
Type the file name or navigate to the file, and then click Open.
Click the Play button on the player.

Click here to learn how to GET optimal screen and audio capture

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